


Independent Variables

by Bloodsbane



Series: Experiments in Affection [2]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/M, Friendship, Humor, Implied Sexual Content, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Platonic Cuddling, Secret Crush, Sexual Frustration, Sharing a Bed, Sleep Deprivation, Sleepy Cuddles, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-12-16
Packaged: 2020-10-16 21:53:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20609915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bloodsbane/pseuds/Bloodsbane
Summary: When Entrapta's behavior takes a turn for the confusing, seemingly for no reason, Hordak decides he's going to get to the bottom of it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! So you may have read the piece before this one, [Testing the Hypothesis](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20089654). If you did, thanks, and yes I did see all your comments, haha
> 
> If you haven't, you don't HAVE to read it before reading this fic. Unlike this one, it is explicit, just so you know. However, it'll definitely provide some context on Entrapta's behavior here. If you'd rather stay in the dark with Hordak, feel free to skip it!

Entrapta had been acting strange lately. 

Well. Hordak had always found her behavior strange. She was quite unlike the other Etherians he’d met, who struck him as painfully predictable. Most were cowards, easy to control. Hordak didn’t have to be one of them to understand all of them, and he put that knowledge toward using them. 

But Entrapta, no. She was different. Unafraid of Hordak (or anything else, as far as he could discern), more interested in the pursuit of knowledge than her own safety. She was a scientist through and through, which Hordak could appreciate, though reluctantly. If he had to be stuck working with any of these lower life-forms, well, he’d certainly been doing worse with the likes of Shadow Weaver and Catra. Entrapta had proven herself useful time and time again. She would do. 

* * *

For a long time, that was how things were. Entrapta was a useful assistant. Or, rather, partner, if Hordak was inclined to be more accurate. For the most part they worked as equals, researching and developing tech alongside each other, building toward a common goal. And to his surprise, their dynamic worked. He’d made leaps and bounds in his attempts to craft a functional machine, one that would support a portal long enough for his goals, and the speed of that success was due to Entrapta. It was an odd and distasteful fact, but one Hordak had come to accept. More had been accomplished in the brief time he’d had the Princess’ help than all the years he’d previously spent working alone. Hordak might hate Etheria, and he might despise the Princesses, but he knew good work when he saw it, and he offered respect when it was due. 

It was because of this new, fragile respect for Entrapta that Hordak refrained from scolding her for her odd behavior. Lately, she’d become distracted, and as far as he could tell there was no reason for it. Nothing of note had happened within the Horde for weeks - his pathetic underlings hadn’t accomplished much. Their project was at something of a roadblock and the two of them had spent a lot of time fiddling, double-checking, testing, re-testing, and adjusting things. Hordak knew this couldn’t be it, though - Entrapta welcomed failure and a challenge (Hordak could barely understand this.)

What, then, was the cause for her air-headdedness? He’d caught her more than once simply staring into space, as if lost in thought. He knew it wasn’t related to their work, because Entrapta could hardly shut up when she was working. She would prattle on incessantly - to Hordak, to Emily, to Imp, to her recorder. ‘Thinking out loud’ she had called it, claiming it helped her stay on track and sometimes understand a problem in a new way. Hordak didn’t enjoy the nonstop chatter, but understood it was her method, and her methods produced results. He’d left her to it, and eventually grew accustomed to her verbal stream of consciousness, like so much white noise. 

So, he noticed when she fell silent.

Twice, she’d dropped a tool while suffering from one of her little episodes. In a daze, Entrapta had even input incorrect directions, causing one of their machines for the portal to sputter and fry, overloaded with energy it wasn’t meant to conduct. She’d growled over that - a rare sight. It had amused Hordak at the time. She hardly ever grew frustrated with mistakes, unlike him. It had been oddly nice to see her scold herself, to witness her hair frizz and watch her little nose scrunch up as she went about fixing the unit. 

The unusual behavior was no longer amusing. It was taking a notable toll on their progress, and Hordak disliked it doubly for bringing to his attention just how much his own focus suffered when Entrapta wasn’t her usual self. She kept to herself, often on the other side of the laboratory, where it was harder to get her attention without raising his voice; she muttered more, which was somehow worse than her neverending nattering; in fact, every action seemed to be in an effort to put herself out of the way. Hordak considered, recognizing the reluctant body language, that Entrapta had developed some sort of aversion or fear toward him after all. For some reason, he greatly disliked this. 

At first, he gave her time. Humans as a whole were rather predictable, but individuals could be capricious, and more than capable of behaving in a way so outrageous or stupid that it was possible for them to be surprising. Perhaps whatever was affecting Entrapta would pass on its own.

When that didn’t work, Hordak begrudgingly debated his options. Ultimately, he decided the best thing would be to ask. Entrapta was nothing if not straight-forward and willing to talk. She hadn’t been difficult to talk to in the past. Hordak had even told her about his own motivations, about Horde Prime, about the fact that he was a clone, and she’d taken it all in stride. Surely her behavior could be explained by something, and bringing it up so that she could take note and act accordingly would be easy. 

Hordak waited for his opportunity. It came within a day. Entrapta was at her desk, sitting in her hair, which held her aloft so she could see everything on the table. There was a welding tool in her hand and her mask was down, but she had already completed her task and was now caught in some sort of daydream. Above her, hidden in the rafters, Imp watched curiously. As Hordak made his slow, silent way over, neither Imp nor Princess seemed to notice him. 

“Entrapta.”

The girl flinched, letting out a soft “Oh!” before her hair twisted and she was facing him. The round, red eyes of her mask stared back at him. “Yes, can I help you?”

“A word.”

“Oh! Sure thing! Let me just- aw nuts!” 

She fumbled her tool, arms moving one way while her hair tilted in the other, as if all her limbs were confused. Hordak’s arm snapped forward and caught the object before it could clatter onto the floor. “Sorry!” Entrapta gasped, shifting so her feet hit the floor. She tried to take the tool from Hordak’s hand, but he held fast. “Um…”

“You’ve been acting strange,” he said, uninterested in delaying the inevitable. “I want to know why.”

“Me? Uh… how so?”

Hordak sneered, just a little, enough so dark red teeth were visible. “How so? Well, for one thing, you’ve nearly destroyed a handful of machines in these last two weeks due to your inattention. Now tell me what in the world is keeping you so preoccupied.”

To his surprise, Entrapta didn’t reply immediately. In fact, she seemed… reluctant. She took a half-step back, tilting her head away so that her eyes rolled past his, gazing somewhere over his shoulder. 

_“Entrapta.”_

“It’s nothing!” The violet-haired woman grimaced, then went on to say, “I mean, well, it’s not nothing. It’s something. But it really isn’t important!”

“Tell me.”

“I’ll be more careful, okay? It isn’t relevant to the project at all, and I’ll just make sure my little mistakes don’t happen again! Promise!”

She was already set to use her hair to climb away, he could see it. Unwilling to let her flee, Hordak reached out with his free hand and caught one shoulder. “I don’t think so,” he said, his voice low enough to be a growl. It was a tone he hadn’t used with the woman since she’d first snuck her way into his lab. 

Entrapta made an odd sound in her throat. Feet hovering barely an inch from the floor, she shimmied her shoulders, as if trying to shake off his hand. Hordak gripped a little harder, letting the nail of his thumb poke ever so gently at the fabric of her collar. The Princess let out a huff of hot air. “You aren’t helping,” she muttered.

“Explain. Now.”

She remained silent, but he could read her expressions well - she was debating something. Slowly, her feet found the floor once again. Hordak was quick to take back his hand, and couldn't help rubbing his fingers together; human bodies ran so _hot_. Touching the exposed flesh at her shoulder made him overly conscious of his own skin.

When Entrapta finally spoke, it was slowly, but the tone was not unlike the one she used when she was considering a logic problem. It naturally sharpened Hordak's attention. He focused fully on her. 

"I am… For personal reasons, I am unwilling to discuss the root of my 'problem' with you." 

Hordak was actually surprised. Entrapta had thus far seemed totally unburdened by pathetic 'personal' dramas. He couldn't help but wonder what strange Eterian problem could be taking up so much of her concentration.

Before he could demand she explain it to him despite her wishes, she went on to say, "However, now that I really think about it, there might actually be a way for you to help me out."

"You need me to help you with something?" 

"Sure! It makes sense… If I'm so fixated because of what I don't know, then learning should satisfy the desire- desire to understand!" Entrapta paused, then nodded to herself, looking satisfied. "I should be thinking of it as not a problem, but merely a puzzle. One I can solve!"

"What is it you require of me?" Hordak asked, somewhat wary. He'd seen enough of Entrapta's experiments to dislike the idea of participating in one directly. He would decline if it was too outrageous, but if it resolved things and let them both work properly once more, he would hear her out at least.

"Well lately I've grown interested in… tactile stimuli," Entrapta explained, her voice unusually even. "The short and long-term effects of physical contact, or lack thereof. My problem is, I've never been… Well, I've never had a chance to collect a lot of data on the subject, so I still don't understand a lot."

She paused, letting Hordak think it over. "How in the world is that what is keeping you from doing your work?" he asked, clearly displeased.

"Because we're around each other so much, I've been applying my questions to you," Entrapta stated simply. "What I mean is, I keep wondering what it would be like to touch you."

"We have touched before," Hordak said carefully. The surprise was back, as well as deep confusion. Why in the world would she wonder about that? "You had to touch me when you fitted me for the new armor. More than necessary, in my opinion…"

"That's not really the kind of touching I mean," Entrapta mumbled, then quickly went on in a brighter voice, "So, I propose an experiment! Would you mind engaging in some low-intensity, skin-to-skin contact with me? I can then record the results. It is my belief that, if I experience it, I won't be so preoccupied theorizing what it might be like. Then I can move onto more important things, like portals!"

She spoke as if realizing the possibility for the first time, her usual excitement resurfacing. Hordak felt at ease to hear it again. So much so, he hardly had a chance to stop himself from nodding in compliance. “That sounds… fine. If it gets us back to work with no more distractions,” he adds, trying to inflect some authority back into his voice. It had a tenancy to disappear when he was with this troublesome Princess.

Entrapta smiled, bright and genuine, and offered one gloved hand to shake. Hordak considered it, then grasped it briefly with his own. They gave it one good shake; the experiment had officially begun. 

“Okay, so… I think what we should do is…” Entrapta put her hands together for a moment, thinking hard. Hordak merely watched and waited. Soon enough, she was moving again. She quickly removed her large gloves, placing them on the table beside them. Hordak had no idea if her hands were small by Etherian standards, but they certainly were compared to his own. Entrapta had boxy palms with thick fingers, kept soft and dexterous with her steadfast use of gloves. They were slightly lighter for the same reason, almost pale compared to the soft brown of her skin. Entrapta rubbed her palms together quickly, warming them up. “May I take your hands, please?”

Hordak didn’t move, but remained still as Entrapta gave him a look, then quickly leaned forward to take his hands in hers. He forced himself not to flinch. He really couldn’t remember the last time anyone had touched him like this. It wasn’t a means to an end, it wasn’t clinical, it wasn’t at all forced. Her hands seemed too small to be holding his, and her fingertips were soft but held him firmly. Her palms were very warm against his naturally clammy skin. 

“You’re so cold!” she exclaimed, sounding pleased for some reason. She dropped his left hand so she could observe the right with both of hers, turning it over to inspect the length of his fingers, the way they dipped into blue claws. “I had noticed before, of course, but I wasn’t sure if that was your normal body temperature.”

She didn’t give him a chance to offer any sort of explanation. In the next moment, she had laced her fingers in with his own. She compensated for how little she could really hold with a no-nonsense grip. Hordak was growing used to the warmth of her skin against his, and he didn’t know exactly how to feel about it.

“Is this… sufficient? For your experiment?” he asked. If this went on long enough, he would start feeling truly out of place, which would probably end with him losing his temper. He was trying to be more aware of his moods around Entrapta. She tended to make him feel especially foolish or unsensible when he got upset and snapped at her, so he preferred to avoid anything which might provoke him. Something about this hand-holding exercise was causing a strange disquiet inside him, one he could put no name to. 

“I would like to try something else!” Entrapta said, taking his other hand in her free one and replicating the interlaced fingers. They stood there a moment, hand in hand, Entrapta simply examining him as one thumb gently rubbed the side of his palm. He felt hyper-aware of her. He wasn’t sure if he liked it. 

Eventually, Entrapta pulled away. Not fully, however, as her hands merely moved to cup his. Then she brought them closer to her, up towards her face, and Hordak finally resisted. “What are you doing?”

“Is this alright?”

“I just don’t know what you’re doing,” Hordak said, nearing the end of his fuse. This entire situation was altogether too strange, and he wasn’t sure how he felt being touched like this. It wasn’t exactly awful - it didn’t hurt, and Hordak didn’t expect Entrapta to try making it hurt. Somehow knowing he was safe with her didn’t help soothe his nerves at all. In fact, something about the idea only added to his unease. 

Entrapta looked at his hands, considering, her expression torn. At last she said in a quiet voice, “I would like it if you held my face.”

“What?”

“Just, um, hold it. Like this?”

Slowly, she brought his hands close again. Hordak’s fingers twitched, but he did allow her to manipulate them. Soon her head was resting in his palms. He was distressed to find her heartbeat, there, at her neck, pulsing faintly beneath his blue skin. Entrapta’s hands pressed against the backs of his own, encouraging him, guiding his fingers so they rested at the back of her skull. His thumbs hovered over her cheeks. He could feel the ghost of every hot breath glancing over his wrists. 

Something somewhere in Hordak’s chest beat just once, so hard it hurt. He tried to take his hands away, but Entrapta’s grip was surprisingly firm. In fact, she pressed his hands even closer to her cheeks. Hordak would have yelled at her if he hadn’t heard a tiny sound of protest escape her throat - _felt it_, in fact, vibrating in her throat. 

“Just- just a little longer, please?” she asked, eyes screwed tightly shut. 

Hordak forced himself to be still. He forced himself to breathe, but not to move, and forced himself not to think about the way Entrapta felt beneath his hands. He did not think about the way her voice quivered when she’d asked - no, begged - him to stay as he was. 

Then, just as abruptly as it had started, Entrapta pulled away. “I have to go record some data!” she announced loudly, and before Hordak could do much of anything, she’d climbed out through the vents.

Hordak looked over at Imp, who was now seated atop Emily. “What just happened?”

Imp let out a small, confused chirp, and shrugged.

* * *

Whatever did happen, it seemed to work. Hordak saw an instant increase in focus and productivity from his lab partner. They were back on track, and Hordak was pleased, wanting nothing more than to settle back into this strange dynamic they’d forged.

He couldn’t help but hesitate, though. Entrapta seemed, for the most part, back to her usual self. She was no longer as distant with him, and there were no more mishaps with work. However, other things were now strange. 

Entrapta had never been what Hordak might call lazy, but she took care of herself. The woman would take breaks throughout the day (usually spent summarizing new thoughts and findings on her recorder or fiddling with Emily’s program), she remembered to eat three miniature meals, and she always made sure she took plenty of time to bathe, groom herself, and sleep. Hordak had the luxury of not needing those things nearly as much, but to neglect those requirements would ultimately be detrimental to Entrapta. It frustrated Hordak early on, but now he’d simply accepted it.

So he did notice when she stopped taking breaks. He did cast incredulous looks across the lab when he realized Entrapta had stayed later than usual, engrossed in her work. When she’d finally shuffle off to bed, she seemed exhausted, and yet the morning after she would not appear very well rested.

If Hordak wasn’t a pitiful coward, he would confront her about it. But he kept thinking back to that ‘experiment’, and something in him - some intuition - told him whatever going on now was related to that. What if it was something he’d done? He couldn’t remember doing anything that might have hurt her, and nothing about her behavior suggested Hordak had made her upset or uncomfortable. But he thought, sitting alone in the sanctum one quiet night, Entrapta had been different around him. More… professional. She didn’t ramble as much in his presence, and was less inclined to grab him with her hair to nudge him aside. 

Feeling disgusted with himself, Hordak pushed himself up and left his sanctum. Sometimes, at night, he would wander about the Fright Zone. There was something soothing about it, something he couldn’t name. Hardly anyone else was ever up at these hours, so he was always alone, with barely any sounds besides his footsteps.

In the very early days, when many of his recruits were still children, stalking the halls at night had been an effective way of keeping them in line. Any caught wandering after curfew were punished, of course, but any caught by Hordak himself were guaranteed never to disobey that particular rule ever again.

After an hour or so, Hordak reluctantly headed back. The building was quiet.

Then, just before he turned into the corridor leading to his sanctum, Hordak caught a sound. His ear twitched, searching for it. For a moment, there was only the silence. Then he heard it again, a faint echo fluttering down the hall. It just barely reached him, but his hearing was better than most Etherian’s. Hordak turned on his heel and followed it. 

It was coming from Entrapta’s room. He’d set her up close by early on in their partnership. It was more convenient than having her travel from halfway across the compound just to work with him. If she was going to be in his sanctum half the time anyway, she might as well be readily available. It was a small room, smaller than the communal barracks, but Hordak believed that privacy was preferable to space. 

The sounds coming from her room were faint, mostly muffled by the steel door. Hordak stood just outside, head tilted. It sounded like… gasping. Heavy breathing. What on earth was she doing at this time of night, out of breath?

Hordak frowned, bringing up a fist to knock; he could, of course, override the personal security code and let himself in, but that seemed a tad overkill. He had no idea what was going on, but if something was wrong-

The sound changed.

Hordak took a step back. He stared at the door. Upon hearing another high-pitched whimper, he abruptly turned and stalked back down the hall. He didn’t stop until he’d reached his sanctum, then ducked into the small room where he preferred to rest. Hordak pressed a button, sliding the door shut behind him. It locked automatically.

As a clone, Hordak and all the others had no need for… certain things. They had been modified to be ideal soldiers - energy efficient, agile, strong, long-lasting, hard to kill. Like his brothers, Hordak possessed no reproductive organs, which were deemed unnecessary; he honestly wasn’t sure if even Horde Prime possessed them. Even if they’d been inclined to propagate their species, clones were naturally sterile. There was no point to it. 

That didn’t mean he didn’t know what sex was, or that Etherians indulged in it. Frequently. Even those in the Fright Zone, which had been annoying to discover. Hordak didn’t bother begrudging them their lust; he’d come to find it was an absolutely useless endeavor when more than half of your work force was made up of young adults who shared communal quarters. More than a few times while he’d walked the halls at night, he’d heard the faint, telltale echoes of their coupling. He tended to steer clear. The most acknowledgement he ever gave the issue was making sure all Horde recruits took the proper supplements to prevent any unnecessary pregnancies. 

It hadn’t ever occurred to Hordak whether or not Entrapta engaged in such behaviors. It seemed too frivolous. Sex had its function, of course, but what need did Entrapta have of a child? She didn’t seem at all interested in being a mother, had never once mentioned it. If there was no practical reason for the sex, he couldn’t imagine his partner wasting any time with it.

Unless… Was the recreational aspect practical? Hordak paced about his room, deep in thought. In the Horde army, the only thing worse than being weak was being ignorant. He understood subjects like sex and lust in a technical sense, but slightly less when it came to the theory - it hadn’t been important at the time. Hordak knew enough, though, to understand that many humans engaged in sex simply for the pleasure of it. The actions of his troops were proof enough. Perhaps for Entrapta, the act alone was a means to an end. 

Something made Hordak pause, some sense he was missing something. He reviewed though it all over once more, frowning when he realized what it was. 

Who had been with Entrapta? After all, sex was a game made for two. So who on earth was Entrapta sharing a bed with? Hordak hadn’t seen nor heard anybody else enter this part of the facility. Hardly anyone dared to come near his sanctum besides Force Captain Catra or one of her little toadies. Not one of them, surely…

Hordak couldn’t recall hearing anyone else when he’d been by the door, but he hadn’t been there for long. Perhaps they’d just been quieter than Entrapta when in the middle off…

It was a mental roadblock. Hordak wasn’t really _trying _to imagine Entrapta engaging in such acts, but even if he was, he couldn’t seem to conjure up anything. The idea seemed too far removed, both from her and from himself. 

“The important thing,” he mumbled, “is whether or not this aids or hinders our ability to work. Perhaps satisfying these desires will improve her work ethic. She’s been doing well lately. Though… is this why she’s been overtired?” It would make sense. If she was having company over so late, so often, and engaging in what Hordak understood could be a tiring exercise, that might be what was causing her lack of sleep. 

In the end, he decided to leave things be. For now. If her condition got any worse, he would make himself confront her about it again. 

Hordak stood, arms crossed, at the center of the little room. He remained there, lost in thought as the memory of her voice played over and over again in his head.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait! My semester of school started kicking my ass, so I really didn't have any time to spend focusing on this fic =w=; But I've been getting such nice little comments on it lately, and that really made me want to update! So thank you all very much, as usual, for such a kind response. 
> 
> As predicted, this fic ends on a soft note, and I expect I'll be writing one more(?) entry to this series which will contain any actual smut. No idea how long it'll be or when I start it, but it's something to look forward to!
> 
> Please enjoy~

Two days after the incident in the hallway, Entrapta falls into some sort of mania. Hordak has never seen anyone - Etherian or Horde clone - work with such energy as her. For the next 37 hours, Entrapda does nothing but build, take verbal notes, run around the lab, blow things up, take more notes, and eat snacks.

She doesn't leave the sanctum to sleep. Hordak has to remind her to drink water after the first twelve hours, when her voice threatens to dry out completely. Entrapta talks two-dozen miles a minute, tripping over her own statements as her brain fires off in every possible direction. Hordak quickly gave up trying to follow along with any of her verbal musings.

It's sort of beautiful to witness, in a vaguely terrifying way. Hordak has seen some of the effects of sleep deprivation in Etherians before. He works his soldiers hard, after all. Still, he's never seen this sort of mania, the abrupt appearance of completely unwarranted energy that propels Entrapta through several stages of their work. 

Of course it can't last forever. It's almost eerie, when Hordak pauses in his work long enough to realize the sanctum is completely silent. Emily and Imp are settled near the back of the room asleep, which tells him it's likely evening. The ambient rumbling of the Fright Zone is at its softest. Hordak leaves his data behind to locate his lab partner. 

He finds her on the floor, tucked away in a corner. She'd been making manual adjustments to one of the generators nearest the wall. Partially hidden by thick tubing, the spot was darker than the rest of the lab. Entrapta must have just finished her repairs; the wrench was still in one hand, folded beneath the arm she's rested her head on. Hordak can hear the way she snores - gently, the faintest snort followed by something like a wheeze. 

Well, this wouldn't do. At this point Hordak didn't mind his partner finally crashing - he'd been half expecting, half hoping for it - but it hadn't occurred to him she might fall asleep in the middle of work. The lab was absolutely no place for a nap, and if Hordak had to guess, the princess would be out cold for at least 12 hours.

Abruptly, Hordak realized that this wasn't a problem, but an opportunity. He now had the perfect excuse to take Entrapta to her personal quarters. That meant he could get inside.

The clone wasted no more time before kneeling down to scoop up Entrapta. She was surprisingly weighty, even with his exo-armor. Holding her like this, with one arm tucked beneath her knees and another steadying her shoulders, she seemed bigger than usual. Entrapta was already a little short by Etherian standards - next to Hordak, she only came up to his ribs without the use of her hair. He could feel the heat of her body despite all his armor. It was strangely overwhelming, and Hordak tried to take a deep breath to clear his head, only to be assaulted with her scent. It was strong, given she likely hadn't bathed in a couple of days, but not wholly unpleasant; it held the sweet, metallic tang of metal, and some sort of musk that seemed too natural for his labs. 

It was easy to forget, sometimes, that Entrapta was real. She wasn't a figment of his imagination, or some fae creature come from nowhere, ethereal and untouchable. She was flesh and blood; she had mass, she had presence. Entrapta was a princess, yes, but she was not some sort of nightmare; nor was she some intangible dream, impossible to reach.

Hordak realized this was it, the feeling that had set him on edge the other day when Entrapta tried that strange touching experiment. It was the hyper-awareness of her which unsettled him. From a distance, Entrapta could be like anyone else on this planet: a pawn to use, a small piece of the puzzle that would lead him back to Horde Prime. Something to be used as needed and discarded when necessary. But up close, feeling the rock of each steady breath, the warm, persistent pulse of a heartbeat beneath her skin… Entrapta was very real, and she was nothing like anyone else Hordak had ever seen.

Something touched Hordak's calf; he nearly jumped out of his armor before he realized what it was. Entrapta's hair was moving up his body. Interesting - he wasn't aware it could move while she wasn't conscious. Feeling only a little wary, Hordak kept still as he watched the two thick, purple pigtails make their way up and up until they wrapped around his shoulders. The movement was languid, and their grip was loose. Was it aware of him? Did it register that Entrapta was being held aloft, and meant to offer some additional support? Or perhaps, unsure of what was touching Entrapta, the hair meant to entangle or even strangle him as a form of self-defence.

When Hordak remained un-strangled, the hair settling on his shoulders, he dismissed that last idea. This was certainly something though; he would ask Entrapta about it whenever she woke up.

Right. Entrapta, sleeping, bed. Hordak turned left the sanctum.

Entrapta's room, like all the rooms for his commanding officers and force captains, had a keypad for a lock code. There was an override code that Hordak could use to get past any door as he pleased; he typed it in with one hand, only slightly clumsy as he adjusted his grip to keep his hold on the woman. 

The room beyond was about what he expected: cluttered, full of gadgets, with an open vent in one corner and a spot clearly set aside for Emily to charge at. Entrapta's bed _had _been on a frame, but said frame was nowhere to be found. Instead, the mattress had been put on the floor and shoved into the far corner. It was absolutely drowning in blankets and pillows. Hordak squinted at their bright colors - brought back from Dryl, then. 

On the walls were several pictures without frames. They'd been taped onto the metal surface (or, in one case, attached with several stickers.) Hordak wandered over, surprised when he realized the two figures with Entrapta were Force Captain Catra and Scorpia. In one group shot, all three of them were dressed in winter gear. This must have been before he sent them to the Northern Reach to recover First One's tech. In another picture close by, all three of them were on a couch. Catra looked like her usual self, scowling, but Entrapta and Scorpia were smiling and sitting close. That wasn't so unbelievable - Force Captain Scorpia was the only person Hordak knew visited Entrapta at times. She would always shout a hello at his lab partner when giving her reports, much to his chagrin (but Entrapta sounded happy when she shouted hello back, so he allowed it.) 

Hordak remembered what he was here for, and scrutinised the picture more closely. Could it be Scorpia, then? Surely not. If that was the case, Hordak was certain he'd have heard more than Entrapta on the other side of the door that night, like something breaking and a slew of useless apologies. Besides, there was no way Scorpia could sneak around the sanctum without him knowing. She wasn't exactly built for stealth.

Hordak turned away from those pictures and went to inspect the others. There weren't many. One was of a strange model with lightbulbs attached to a spherical structure, their coils glowing a harsh pink. To his surprise, he featured in one picture: a shot Entrapta sitting in her hair, only slightly above the camera, tilting her head back. Her mouth was open, so she must have been saying something to him. Hordak vaguely remembered the moment; he'd been tweeking the structure of a panel, and the piece of metal was held in one hand, the other poking at it with a screw. His head was turned just slightly, clearly regarding Entrapta as she spoke.

Hordak couldn't recall the last time he'd seen a picture of himself. His visage had featured on some propaganda at the start of things, but all that material was long disposed of. In truth, Hordak hated looking at himself, especially static images. But it was strange... His expression held so little of the fierceness that might be expected. Whenever forced to confront his reflection, Hordak could not hold back his disgust, and a scowl always stared back at him then. Here, he wasn't glaring at himself. His focus was clearly on Entrapta, and his expression was…

In his arms, Entrapta mumbled. Hordak looked away from the picture all too willingly, forcing himself to focus on the task at hand. He made his way over to the mattress, kicking things out of his way to clear a path. The blanket was thick under his knees as be knelt to place her on top of her messy bed. 

The hair wrapped on his shoulders didn't fall off right away. Hordak waited, unsure if he should try pulling it off. In his hesitation, he took a moment to inspect his partner. Entrapta was still in her work clothes… but what could he do about that? He knew humans wore different clothes to bed, but there was no way he was going to undress and then re-dress Entrapta while she slept. Should he wake her up so she could change? Hordak wasn't especially keen to do so. Knowing Entrapta, she'd argue the last twenty minutes was more than enough time to recharge, and she's get back into the labs through sheer force of will (and/or the vents.)

The clone frowned deeply, inspecting her as purple tendrils very slowly loosened their grip on him. She still had her shoes on. He could take those off, at least. He hated the idea of doing something so… subservient. Hordak debated it for a moment, then sighed in defeat. He decided the idea of Entrapta rolling around on her bed and getting dirt and dried oil stains all over it was an idea he disliked more.

The shoes were bulky things with no laces or clasps. Hordak had to hold Entrapta's ankles and shimmy them off one at a time. He also removed her socks as swiftly as he could, trying not to speculate how long they'd been worn. 

Entrapta's gloves were easier. Hordak put all the clothes in a small pile away from the bed. By the time he was done, Entrapta's hair had slid off of him completely.

Now was the time to snoop, Hordak reasoned. It was highly unlikely he or Entrapta would be needed at this hour, so no one would come poking around. If Entrapta woke up, Hordak had the perfect excuse for being there. Not that he _needed _an excuse, Hordak reminded himself as he glanced around the room for anything worth investigating. He was leader of the Horde, the Fright Zone his domain; he could go where he pleased and no one had the authority to object. Still, Entrapta was inquisitive and good at getting answers when she dug her teeth in, so it helped to have a believable excuse that would sate her curiosity. 

Hordak stood and spent a few minutes meandering about the room, snooping as much as he could while making minimal noise. He seriously doubted Entrapta would notice anything was out of place but tried not to disturb things too much anyway. There wasn't much to find. The photographs seemed to be the only personal touch Entrapta had to her room. Everything else was work or random trinkets with seemingly no purpose. The two of the three drawers Hordak managed to find amidst the mess were filled with blueprints. The third was stuffed full of clothes. 

Hordak had just begun to feel frustrated at finding no clues (what _was _he looking for, anyway? What would he have to uncover to answer the wordless question that had been gnawing at him for days?) when a sound made him freeze. Or rather, the lack of a sound; Entrapta was no longer snoring. Hordak turned to see her rubbing at her eyes with a clumsy hand. Before he could slink out the door, that violet gaze was on him.

Her expression was confused, her eyes still bleary with exhaustion. For a few seconds they just stared at each other. 

"Hmmmm… Where am I?" came the question, muttered so very quietly, sleep dragging at every word. Hordak had never heard his partner speak so gently. He was pretty sure her minimum volume was a harsh whisper. 

"You are in your room," Hordak answered. Standing straight, arms folded behind his back, he moved forward so he could loom over her a little. Maybe a bit of intimidation would deter further inquiries. "You fell asleep in the lab."

Entrapta blinks. One pigtail sluggishly reaches out to grab something and pull it over so Entrapta can inspect the faintly glowing screen, which she squints at. Hordak realizes it's probably a clock and says, "It was just a few minutes ago."

"...Why am I in my room?"

"What?"

"You said… I fell asleep in the lab. But I'm here?"

Hordak can't help but tilt his head at her, one long ear flicking. It seems that in such a state as this, Entrapta isn't quite so quick-thinking. That is… an amusing discovery. Hordak offers something close to a smirk and says, "I brought you here, Entrapta."

Entrapta stares at him. She's obviously only half there, really - with how slowly she blinks, he wouldn't be surprised if she fell back asleep before responding. But instead she rolls onto her back, and when she speaks her voice is just slightly sharper, more aware, but soft. "You held me?"

The smirk disappears. Hordak takes a half-step back and quickly says, "I _carried_ you."

"You carried me…" It takes a second for her to process. Once she does, Entrapta groans and rubs her face with both hands, sounding disappointed.

A prickle of defensiveness sparks across Hordak's body, and before he can help it he snaps, "Would you rather I have left you on the floor, then?"

Entrapta doesn't appear to notice his agitation. When she looks at him again, her expression holds a familiar petulance. "I don't remember it."

"What?"

"Carrying me; being carried."

"You were asleep," Hordak says, slowly, like he's speaking to a child. Uhg. The whole reason he liked being with Entrapta was because he _didn't _have to deal with such idiotic-

"I don't remember it at all," Entrapta whines, and for some reason she sounds truly upset. Hordak had no idea what her problem could possibly be. Was her sleep deprivation also affecting her mood?

"Regardless, you should go back to sleep," Hordak decides. "You've been awake for too long to be of any use to the project."

"Not fair…" Entrapta grumbles.

Hordak barks a laugh. "Who said anything about fairness? You're talking nonsense, Entrapta - go to sleep."

"But-" The woman seems so very lost, trapped between a wakeful mind and sleepy body. "But- I-" Her attention is suddenly caught by something else, and Hordak watches her stare at her own hands. Then she sits up, just enough to see her feet. "Did you take off my shoes?" 

"I am leaving," Hordak announces. He turns to leave - to flee, really - but something catches this waist. The clone snarls down at the lock of hair restraining him. "Entrapta!"

She was staring at him again, this time with a look both familiar and foreign. Hordak can tell she's making estimations in her head, calculating, debating on something. There is an edge of something else in her eyes, something Hordak had never seen before.

Finally, she decides; her hair releases Hordak and her posture collapses. But before he can leave, Entrapta asks, "Would you lie down with me?" 

"...What?"

"On the bed." Entrapta moved over on her small mattress, patting the spot. Hordak stares at it, his mind blank. "...Do you want to? You don't have to," Entrapta mutters.

"I don't like lying down," is all Hordak can think to say. 

"You can just sit!"

Well. There goes his only argument.

Hordak sits. It's weird. The mattress has springs that dig into his bottom, so it isn't exactly comfortable. The blankets and pillows are the bed's only salvation, offering something for him to lean back on instead of the cold, unforgiving metal wall. 

There is no conceivable reason that Hordak can think of for Entrapta to want him here when she's supposed to be sleeping, but her expression betrays her satisfaction. It's impossible to argue with those eyes, glittering in a way he's come to anticipate, even to crave. 

"Is this another go at your strange tactile experiment from the other day?" Hordak wonders aloud. He's getting that feeling again, the new and stressful one, which makes him draw the comparison.

Entrapta gives him a blank look for half a second before saying, "Oh! Well, it could be, if you'd like. Now would be a great time to collect more data." Entrapta pauses, getting that calculating look again. "That's not really why I asked, though," she admits. "I just wanted to." 

"Why?" Hordak demands, and he's starting to get a bit angry now. He's not entirely sure why, but it's comfortable, familiar, so he doesn't bother examining it. "Wanted to what?"

"Be near you," she says, and suddenly she's touching him. Hordak goes stock still as Entrapta moves until their thighs are pressed together. Her shoulder settles against his arm, and though there’s no direct contact due to his armor and her overalls, Hordak feels like they’re skin-to-skin anyway. 

As a clone who was ripped from his own time and space into a totally unknown, alien planet, Hordak is distressed to find that this is easily the strangest situation he’s ever been in. 

“Why?” he asks again. 

"Because you're my lab partner! And my friend." Entrapta reaches over to take his hand, and Hordak is astounded by the warmth of her skin. "Is this okay?"

"It's fine," Hordak mumbles, not at all sure how fine it is. He watches Entrapta lace their fingers together, feels her rest more of her weight onto him. "I don't understand," he admits eventually, after running her words through his head a dozen more times.

"I don't either, really," Entrapta says. It sounds like a sigh, one of content defeat. "There are lots of things I don't understand! But that's what makes finding out about them so fun, right? And I want to find out about this. I've never been so fixated on touching someone else." 

"What do you get out of this?" Hordak asks, genuinely curious. The strange feelings have started to ease the longer Entrapta speaks. She's talking more like her usual self, if a bit more slowly due to being so tired. It settles Hordak's nerves enough for him to relax into the safety of analyzing things over experiencing them.

"Um, well, it makes me happy," Entrapta offers. Then she launches into a small speech, wiggling a bit as she speaks, "You see, humans are a very social species. We're designed to crave the comfort and security that comes with community. I've never really been like that… or, at least, it had never been human contact I craved! I've always been more than fine with my bots to keep me company. I used to spend weeks or months in my castle without seeing any other flesh-and-blood person. 

"But I guess I'm still human," Entrapta says with a strange wistfulness. "So maybe the need for social interaction with my species is just hardwired into my brain; I still crave it, to an extent. But, well, I've never been very close to anyone. They don't like science, or they don't like me; whatever the reason, making friends was always hard for me. Mostly I don't care, though! I have my work and my robots - like Emily! - so I was never really lonely."

"What, exactly, does all that have to do with me?"

"Nothing I guess! You're not human, are you? But I am, still, and you're my friend, and friends like to be close like this. Sometimes. I think." Entrapta taps her chin, looking speculative. "At least, I'm pretty sure. Scorpia says I'm her friend and she is very touchy. She holds me and hugs me and sits close all the time! So I think it's okay."

"Then why don't you do those things with _her?"_ Hordak snaps. All at once, he's reminded of why he came here in the first, other than dropping off Entrapta to sleep. Maybe he should reconsider the possibility that Scorpia is the one who has been keeping Entrapta company at night.

"I like you better," Entrapta answers simply. "So I'd rather touch you."

Hordak can’t think of anything else to say, so he just grunts and looks away.

They sit in silence. It’s strange, but not exactly bad. Hordak is a little annoyed at the inactivity, frustrated by the fact that he can’t accomplish anything productive while sitting there. Yet in turn, his full focus inevitably turns to Entrapta - the sound of her breathing, the feeling of her fingers toying with his, the pleased little sounds she makes under her breath. Now and then he hears her muttering, though he can’t understand a scrap of what she might be trying to say. If her breaths are any hint, it would seem like she’s being drawn back into that deep sleep from before. 

“You should rest,” Hordak tries again, keeping his voice quiet in an attempt to coax her into agreement. 

Entrapta makes a dissatisfied sound, but sits up a little more, pulling away from Hordak just enough to reclaim her hand. It shouldn’t feel like a loss. Then she asks, “You don’t have to, but would you stay here with me? You can leave afterwards, if you want.” 

“Stay until you fall asleep?”

“Mmhm. I would like that,” Entrapta mumbles. She only sounds half-awake at this point. Hordak wonders how much of this she’s going to remember once she’s back to normal. He really has no idea how much he _wants_ her to remember. 

Before he has a chance to answer, Entrapta starts shoving her overalls down her legs, exposing smooth brown skin that Hordak has never seen before. Her thighs are thicker than his, and he can just see the edge of tight black shorts beneath the hem of her shirt, which goes down past her hips. After Entrapta carelessly tosses her overalls toward the foot of her bed (Hordak’s eye twitches at this), she removes the shorts as well. 

“Don’t you want… a different shirt?” Hordak asks, trying not to let his partner’s increased nudity unsettle him. 

“No point,” Entrapta says through a yawn. “If I wear a new one now, it’ll just get dirty because I haven’t bathed lately, and then I’ll have to wash it. This one is already dirty, so now I don’t have more laundry to do.”

“I… don’t agree with that logic. At all.”

“Well, I just don’t wanna.” 

“Childish,” Hordak sneers, but Entrapta only snickers back and bumps him with her shoulder.

Entrapta pulls two blankets up to cover her legs, re-arranging pillows near her so she can sit up a little more easily. Then she loops an arm through Hordak’s and takes his hand with her free one, effectively holding him hostage. 

“Tell me about some of the places you’ve been,” Entrapta mumbles, resting her cheek against his shoulder. “You said you’ve been to all sorts of planets, right?”

“That’s correct.”

“Tell me about them. Did you have a favorite one? Oh, which ones supported intelligent life? How many-”

“Stop talking, Entrapta,” Hordak scolded, trying not to sound overly fond. “I can’t explain anything if you don’t let me.”

“Yes, okay, sorry! Go ahead.”

She lasts for about half an hour, if Hordak’s guess is right. For a little while there is only Hordak’s voice, almost too loud in the small, quiet room, as he recounts various feats of Horde Prime and some of the more notable planets his army had conquered. Though Hordak never paid much attention to local flora and fauna - no more than was necessary to determine which resources to gather, which animals to kill - he makes a point to try remembering any interesting details, which Entrapta accepts greedily and always inquires after. The questions gradually begin to peter out. When she quiets down, Hordak continues, musing after particularly impressive battles fought or the few instances a strange terraformation would catch his eye and imprint on his memory. Now and then he would glance down at his partner to see if she was still listening. Of course she was. 

Hordak had just started describing some of the strange oceans he had come across when he looked down to realize Entrapta’s eyes were closed, her breathing deep and even. One of her pigtails had curled loosely around his waist. Her arms were still wrapped around his own. 

He should leave. Hordak has no real reason to stay, especially after wasting so much time on… this. Whatever this is. But he finds he’s reluctant to begin the process of extracting himself from Entrapta, and in that reluctance he develops excuses to stay. Surely he would wake her up if he tried. There wasn’t much for him to do on his own in the lab beyond a few menial tasks. It was still late, so no one would need him. 

Besides, Hordak tells himself as he tries his best to relax, it had been awhile since he’d gotten any sleep of his own. He doesn’t need it in the same way humans do, but this last week has been very strange, requiring a lot of mental energy he doesn’t have to spare. LIke Entrapta, he could probably due with a break, no matter how much he hated to admit it. 

So he stays. He closes his eyes and tries not to think too hard about anything. The room is quiet except for Entrapta’s tiny snores. Hordak fades away to the gentle rhythm of her heartbeat playing beneath his fingertips. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading you guys! Like I said, I'm really not sure when I'll be getting to the next part for this series. I've got a couple other small/silly entrapdak fics I wanna write, so I may try knocking out one or two of those before I dive into more of this particular series. But I hope yall are enjoying it an are excited to see what comes next~ 
> 
> If you are so inclined, please let me know what you think, and what you might be hoping to see!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm gonna say this will be two chapters long. Originally I intended for it to reach a point where the Explicit rating was necessary, but ultimately decided to go a different way with it. It might still change, though. For now, it's just M for sexual themes. 
> 
> Not sure when chapter 2 will come, or if part 3 will happen! Again, if this gets a nice response though, well, that always motivates me. I do love hearing from my readers~


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